I discovered Robert Pollard (the guy behind Guided By Voices) around 1996. His music seemed boring at first, but after a few tries I recognized his genius and since then have acquired most of his recorded output (I own 67 CDs of his by a quick count).
I discovered SF author Jack Vance a few years ago. His books seemed boring at first, but after a few tries I recognized his genius and since then have acquired most of his books that are in print in the US (a little over 20).
I realized recently that they have more in common than the fact that I love both of them.
- incredibly prolific
- awesome at their best
- but with a nonexistent quality filter
- largely intuitive in approach, as far as I can tell
- even the best works are big messes (in a great way) rather than tightly constructed jewels
- apparently wide-ranging in genre
- but with enough tics that their work is instantly recognizable
I can’t think of anyone else (in any field) who is analogous. If there is, I want to find them, since I bet I would love them too.
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